Invitiation
by darling-gypsum
Summary: A year into their relationship, Asami builds up some nerve.
_For accompanying music while reading, search for "Cloud Speed" by Sad Souls_

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Wandering into Asami's study, Korra tried to force her eyes to stay open. The morning sun was blaring through the windows, and she grumbled quietly to herself in that groggy cloud between sleep and the rest of the day. Asami was at her desk, pouring over a stack of papers and signing page after page with a concentration that was calm and, to be honest, far too awake.

"Hey, early bird," Korra yawned, dragging her feet forward.

"I'm sorry," Asami sighed, still scratching with her pen. "I was hoping I'd be finished with this before you woke up."

"I knew what I signed up for." Korra smiled through another yawn, following the edge of the desk with a hand to guide her. She reached Asami's chair and kissed her cheek. "Good morning."

"It's almost noon," Asami smirked. She leaned into the kiss with her eyes still glued to her work.

Korra wrapped her arms over Asami's shoulders in a hug. "What's all this?" she asked, nodding to the binder of papers she was signing.

"A little employee appreciation," Asami said. "I'm signing bonus checks."

"Good problem to have."

"Except when it pulls you out of bed," Asami muttered.

With a laugh, Korra kissed her again, this time on a spot just low enough on her jaw that Asami's pen stopped moving for a second. Korra grinned against her cheek. "I think I'm gonna head out soon."

That seemed to finally catch Asami's attention. She glanced up from her signing and turned her chair as Korra leaned against the desk. "You don't want to stay for breakfast?" she asked. "Well...lunch."

"I've been dodging calls from Raiko," Korra said with a sigh. "I should really follow up with him." She propped a bare foot up on the arm of Asami's chair and gently turned it back and forth. "How about dinner?"

"Sure," Asami smiled, reclining into the motion. "Go out, or stay in?" She squeezed Korra's foot playfully.

"In," Korra said. "I think I've only got a few hours of productivity in me today." She watched Asami drift into the sway of her chair, her eyes sliding closed. The light of the nearest window danced across her face. Everything about her seemed to glow.

Korra suddenly felt much more awake. She slowly stopped rocking the chair and leaned forward to hold Asami's lovely face in her hands. Giving her a lingering kiss goodbye.

Asami's brain seemed to sink into the kiss, and when Korra pulled away, she let out a long breath. "Don't go," she whined softly. She held onto Korra's hand, keeping her anchored against the desk even as she stood up.

"I have been here for three days," Korra chuckled, pushing back a few loose strands of hair from Asami's face. "Granted, that's not the longest stretch we've gone, but I really need to take Naga out on a run, I need a clean change of clothes-"

"You really should keep some here," Asami reminded her. A pair of spare boots did not constitute a full outfit.

"I know, I know." Reluctantly, she let Asami turn her chair back to her desk.

"Or, you know, you could...just keep them all here." Asami scrawled her signature across another check quietly.

Korra blinked.

"Doesn't have to be here," Asami said quickly. "I know the estate's a little...extravagant. And out of the way up here in the mountains. I can always look for something a little closer to the city. Smaller." There was a moment of quiet before Asami glanced up to find Korra smiling at her. She blushed a bit. "For the record, this is me asking you to move in with me. Very awkwardly."

"I got that," Korra smiled, bracing either side of the chair. Boxing her in. "I just don't get to see you nervous like this very much."

Asami gave her a glare that was not very angry.

"You've been thinking about this a lot," Korra said.

"A year seemed like an appropriate time to wait." She kept it to herself that she'd been thinking about asking Korra for months, and had been chickening out till now.

"I don't actually have that much stuff," Korra admitted. "I could probably get it all over here in one go. How about tonight?"

Asami tapped her fingers on the desktop. "Yeah. That would be great."

Korra rested her hand on Asami's. The feeling had become familiar and calming. She was warm. Wonderful. "I like the idea of waking up with you more," Korra said. Her smile broadened. "You know you're getting a polar bear dog, too, right?"

"Naga can have the whole run of the backyard." Asami didn't forget the menus for the dozen lunch meetings she hosted every month, or the birthday of each of her secretaries. There was no way she'd let 300 bulk pounds of fur slip past her.

"I'm sure the gardener will love that," Korra laughed.

Sliding her chair back, Asami stood with that familiar quick energy of a new project. "There's at least two unused garages in the back. We can set one up for her with a bed and whatever she needs. I know that the gymnasium might not be big enough for you, but we can expand it out into the next room. And the racing track's only a mile or two away, if you want more space to-"

Korra silenced her with another kiss. "We can work out plans when I get home."

That word on her lips made everything go warm. She watched Asami bite her lip to hold back another grin.

"I love you," Korra said. Kissing her quick.

"Love you too," Asami breathed. "See you tonight?"

Korra nodded, hustling out the door.

Left alone with her work, Asami felt every molecule in her body going haywire. She drifted back into her chair, absently chewing on her pen as she smiled out the window. Korra would be back tonight to stay. Asami had actually managed to get the words out this time. Bolin owed her more than a few yuans.

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